1. Technical Field
The present invention relates generally to an apparatus and method for collecting vehicle diagnostic information and, more particularly, to an apparatus and method for collecting vehicle diagnostic information using Wavelength Division Multiplexing (WDM).
2. Description of the Related Art
Networks for vehicles utilize various protocols depending on the characteristics of the vehicles. For example, networks for vehicles may utilize protocols for vehicles such as the Local Interconnect Network (LIN) protocol, the Controller Area Network (CAN) protocol, the FlexRay protocol, and the Media Oriented System Transport (MOST) protocol.
The LIN protocol is a low-cost serial communication protocol which is a distributed electronic system inside a vehicle. The LIN protocol can reduce expenses because it does not require the bandwidth and multi-functionality which are required by the CAN protocol.
The CAN protocol is an efficient serial communication protocol which supports distributed real-time control having a very high security level. The CAN protocol is being widely used as a communication protocol for the industry, particularly vehicles, thanks to advantages such as multi-master support, priority processing, and elaborate error detection.
The FlexRay protocol is a communication protocol which transfers data using fixed time slots. The FlexRay protocol assigns fixed time slots, which allow exclusive entry rights, to nodes which are connected to a bus. In accordance with the FlexRay protocol, the time at which data is on a bus can be accurately calculated, and entry into the bus can be predicted.
The MOST protocol is a communication protocol which is used for data transmission among the various types of multimedia devices of a vehicle. The MOST protocol is a communication protocol for vehicles, which generally forms a ring-type network and can transmit large amounts of multimedia information, such as audio and video, via optical fibers over a wide bandwidth and at high speed.
Meanwhile, when networks for vehicles support a variety of protocols for vehicles, there is the problem of interference occurring among the different protocols for vehicles.